Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification
Soil erosion severely threatens the soil resource and the sustainability of agriculture. After decades of research, this problem still persists, despite the fact that adequate technical solutions now exist for most situations. This begs the question as to why soil conservation is not more rapidly an...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Copernicus Publications
2017-03-01
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| Series: | SOIL |
| Online Access: | http://www.soil-journal.net/3/45/2017/soil-3-45-2017.pdf |
| _version_ | 1818482846174543872 |
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| author | G. Govers R. Merckx B. van Wesemael K. Van Oost |
| author_facet | G. Govers R. Merckx B. van Wesemael K. Van Oost |
| author_sort | G. Govers |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Soil erosion severely threatens the soil resource and the
sustainability of agriculture. After decades of research, this problem still
persists, despite the fact that adequate technical solutions now exist for
most situations. This begs the question as to why soil conservation is not
more rapidly and more generally implemented. Studies show that the
implementation of soil conservation measures depends on a multitude of
factors but it is also clear that rapid change in agricultural systems only
happens when a clear economic incentive is present for the farmer.
Conservation measures are often more or less cost-neutral, which explains why
they are often less generally adopted than expected. This needs to be
accounted for when developing a strategy on how we may achieve effective
soil conservation in the Global South, where agriculture will fundamentally
change in the next century. In this paper we argue that smart
intensification is a necessary component of such a strategy. Smart
intensification will not only allow for soil conservation to be made more
economical, but will also allow for significant gains to be made in terms of soil
organic carbon storage, water efficiency and biodiversity, while at the same
time lowering the overall erosion risk. While smart intensification as such
will not lead to adequate soil conservation, it will facilitate it and, at
the same time, allow for the farmers of the Global South to be offered a more viable
future. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T11:52:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d3b3842615ab4a56bd3e8dcd2709fad6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2199-3971 2199-398X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T11:52:05Z |
| publishDate | 2017-03-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | SOIL |
| spelling | doaj.art-d3b3842615ab4a56bd3e8dcd2709fad62022-12-22T01:49:54ZengCopernicus PublicationsSOIL2199-39712199-398X2017-03-0131455910.5194/soil-3-45-2017Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensificationG. Govers0R. Merckx1B. van Wesemael2K. Van Oost3KU Leuven, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Celestijnenlaan 200E, 3001 Leuven, BelgiumKU Leuven, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Celestijnenlaan 200E, 3001 Leuven, BelgiumUniversité Catholique de Louvain, Earth and Life Institute, 3 Place Louis Pasteur, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, BelgiumUniversité Catholique de Louvain, Earth and Life Institute, 3 Place Louis Pasteur, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, BelgiumSoil erosion severely threatens the soil resource and the sustainability of agriculture. After decades of research, this problem still persists, despite the fact that adequate technical solutions now exist for most situations. This begs the question as to why soil conservation is not more rapidly and more generally implemented. Studies show that the implementation of soil conservation measures depends on a multitude of factors but it is also clear that rapid change in agricultural systems only happens when a clear economic incentive is present for the farmer. Conservation measures are often more or less cost-neutral, which explains why they are often less generally adopted than expected. This needs to be accounted for when developing a strategy on how we may achieve effective soil conservation in the Global South, where agriculture will fundamentally change in the next century. In this paper we argue that smart intensification is a necessary component of such a strategy. Smart intensification will not only allow for soil conservation to be made more economical, but will also allow for significant gains to be made in terms of soil organic carbon storage, water efficiency and biodiversity, while at the same time lowering the overall erosion risk. While smart intensification as such will not lead to adequate soil conservation, it will facilitate it and, at the same time, allow for the farmers of the Global South to be offered a more viable future.http://www.soil-journal.net/3/45/2017/soil-3-45-2017.pdf |
| spellingShingle | G. Govers R. Merckx B. van Wesemael K. Van Oost Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification SOIL |
| title | Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| title_full | Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| title_fullStr | Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| title_full_unstemmed | Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| title_short | Soil conservation in the 21st century: why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| title_sort | soil conservation in the 21st century why we need smart agricultural intensification |
| url | http://www.soil-journal.net/3/45/2017/soil-3-45-2017.pdf |
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